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As West Ham United breezed past Genk at the London Stadium this evening, taking yet more control of Group H, many Irons supporters were blown away by the performance and contribution of defender Craig Dawson.

David Moyes’ men took a giant leap towards finishing top by beating the Belgian giants this evening.

Indeed, they have gone six points clear with their victory and, as per the new Europa League format, potentially finishing as group victors will guarantee West Ham a spot straight into the last 16.

Moyes rested a fair few first teamers tonight with the likes of Manuel Lanzini, Andriy Yarmolenko, Nikola Vlasic, Alphonse Areola and Dawson all coming in after the weekend victory at Everton.

Among all of these fresh faces, it was the latter man who garnered real praise on Twitter for his display – especially considering he opened the floodgates with his towering first half header.

He was also among the highest-rated West Ham players on SofaScore and it’s safe to say his ‘massive’ display didn’t go unnoticed.

Find all the reaction to his outing down below.

West Ham fans blown away by Dawson…

“Dawson you beast”

Credit: @RyanG33A

“Dawson!!!!! What a player”

Credit: @WestHamNews24hr

“Craig Dawson is the hero we never knew we needed”

Credit: @_Sam_Chaplin

“We are absolutely massive and Craig Dawson is absolutely massive”

Credit: @Lew_Fountain

“DAWSON YOU MAGNIFICENT SET PIECE ROBOT”

Credit: @chojinzoku

“can we just bring dawson on in games to attack corners because he’s disgustingly good at it”

Credit: @whuemma

“Craig Dawson!!! Fisted hand Guys so dangerous at set pieces so good in the air”

Credit: @JJ_Hannaway

In other news: ‘Yes yes yes’, ‘No brainer’…West Ham fans buzz as contact made to sign ‘big’ striker, find out more here.

A number of Manchester United supporters are delighted after Ralf Rangnick confirmed that Edinson Cavani would stay put at the club beyond January.

The Uruguayan has enjoyed a wonderful playing career, excelling in the likes of Italy, France and England, not to mention scoring 53 goals in 126 caps for his country.

Cavani has struggled for playing time at United this season, though, only starting three matches in the Premier League, leading to speculation surrounding his future.

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With Cristiano Ronaldo returning to Old Trafford last August, it has seemingly been harder to fit the 34-year-old into the team’s plans. It appears as though Cavani will not be leaving United this month, though.

Fabrizio Romano took to Twitter to share these emphatic comments from Rangnick on the veteran Uruguay striker: “Cavani will definitely NOT leave in January. We spoke about Edi and he knows that I will definitely not let him go — we will definitely need Edi. He’s amazing.

“I told him from the very first day, for me he is a highly important player. He’s staying.”

Man United fans love Cavani latest

It is an update which has been met with resounding positivity by these United fans on Twitter, who provided their thoughts on Rangnick’s comments.

“Excellent”

Credit: @capt_bluntschli

“This news. I love it.”

Credit: @AshishRogers1

“SIUUUUUUUU”

Credit: @wheezingblud

“I am in love! I can’t deny! Our center forward is the king of Uruguay!”

Credit: @Gusti_Neg

“After that celebration for the 1st goal against Burnley I knew he wasn’t leaving.”

Credit: @_GrassIsGreen_

“I am in love”

Credit: @joshrushby_

In other news, a journalist has talked up United’s interest in one player. Find out who it is here.

West Ham United are reportedly interested in a deal for Monaco defender Benoit Badiashile, according to the latest reports…

What’s the word?

As per Calciomercatio, the Hammers are believed to be one of the clubs keeping an eye on the 21-year-old, with Serie A giants Juventus and Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund also credited with an interest in the Frenchman.

Previous reports have suggested the 6 foot 4 colossus could be available for a fee in the region of £33m, with two years still to run on his existing deal at Stade Louis II, making him an attractive option in the upcoming window.

The France U21 international had seemingly come close to a Premier League switch in January, with Newcastle United heavily linked with securing his services, albeit with the St James’ park outfit eventually settling on a move for Brighton’s Dan Burn.

Ogbonna Upgrade

With a top-four place still potentially within their grasp and with a Europa League semi-final clash on the horizon, things are currently going swimmingly for David Moyes’ side, with the Scotsman having worked wonders since the start of his second stint in charge.

Much of the former Manchester United manager’s success has been in recruitment, with the 58-year-old continually making astute moves in the market after a scattergun approach under his predecessor Manuel Pellegrini.

In Badiashile, the Hammers boss could well have found his next perfect acquisition, with the youngster having previously been dubbed a “great talent” by Monaco vice president Oleg Petrov, following his eye-catching displays for the Ligue 1 outfit.

As evidenced by his soaring market valuation – the £14k-per-week star having seen his value rise from £135k to £25.2m in the space of just three years – the starlet is only seemingly going to keep progressing in the coming years.

At just 21, he also represents an ideal and timely replacement for current first-team favourite Angelo Ogbonna, with the Italian central defender set to turn 34 at the end of May and with possible doubts over what his level will be once he returns from his long-term absence.

Both left-footed and of similar build – with the more senior man marginally shorter at 6 foot 3 – the two have very similar playing styles, making the younger man a potentially ideal replacement for the long-serving veteran.

Equally, there is also evidence to suggest that the potential new arrival is already outperforming the one-time Torino man.

In the 11 games the current West Ham man has played in the top-flight this season, he has averaged just one interception and 0.6 tackles per game, as per SofaScore, while by contrast, Badiashile has registered 1.1 interceptions and 1.4 tackles per 90, in his 19 league outings.

Even in his youth, the Limoges-born star already offers a wealth of experience, having already made 114 appearances for his current side – chipping in with three goals and three assists in that time – since making his senior debut back in 2018.

With just three clean sheets to his name this season and a fairly meagre 6.93 match rating, as per SofaScore, in the French top-flight, there is obvious room for improvement, although Moyes has already shown he can coax the best out of those at his disposal.

AND in other news, Time to go: Moyes must ruthlessly axe WHU’s £61k-p/w “monster” as big claim emerges…

Leeds United are still eyeing up ‘three to four midfielders’ in the January transfer window, according to journalist David Anderson.

The Lowdown: Leeds desperate for a midfielder

The Whites have been plagued by injuries throughout this season and they currently look light in the middle of the park, in terms of options.

Kalvin Phillips’ hamstring injury has left a gaping void in that area of the pitch, while Adam Forshaw has to be managed carefully after a long absence of his own.

Leeds have been linked with signing a number of midfielders this month, including Cagliari’s Nahitan Nandez and Huddersfield Town’s Lewis O’Brien.

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The Latest: Journalist makes fresh claim

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Anderson claimed Victor Orta and co are looking at a move for a midfielder, even though money is hard to come by at present:

“What I’m being told is that they’re looking at three to four midfielders.

“They want to sign at least one. It’s a delicate one because they don’t have pots of cash because they don’t really plan to spend money in January. Normally they like to spend in summer.”

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The Verdict: At least one needed

It would be a huge surprise if January ticked by and no midfielder came in, with Phillips’ absence making it essential that more depth is added.

In fact, one signing should be the bare minimum, with a relegation battle potentially on the cards and another possible injury setback for Forshaw giving Marcelo Bielsa even fewer options.

The hope is that someone of Nandez or O’Brien’s ilk arrives in the coming weeks, in what would be a much-needed boost, with an injection of fresh blood required.

Both of those aforementioned players would add tenacity and quality, averaging two and 2.8 tackles per game in their respective leagues this season.

In other news, Leeds are reportedly ‘pressing’ to complete one piece of transfer business. Read more here.

West Ham United are closing in on the signing of Marseille defender Duje Caleta-Car as the January transfer window draws nearer to its close.

What’s the story?

It’s been a slow start to the window for David Moyes’ side, with the Hammers struggling to make any inroads in terms of any incomings, but that appears to be coming to an end very soon.

According to French publication L’Équipe du Soir, Caleta-Car should be on his way to the London Stadium shortly, and that while fellow Premier League sides Wolves and Newcastle were interested in him, it’s West Ham who have won the race for him.

First major signing for West Ham

With the injury struggles the Hammers have had this season, particularly in defence, the addition of an experienced defender like Caleta-Car is welcome news for West Ham fans.

The 25-year-old has been a regular for Marseille in recent seasons, but he has been in and out of the side this term, with Jorge Sampaoli seemingly favouring Arsenal loanee William Saliba as the right-sided central defender.

Despite the lack of game-time, Caleta-Car has shown the kind of imposing centre-back that he is, winning a monstrous 74% of his total duels in Ligue 1 this year, and winning 75% of those contested in the air – exactly the kind of return that Moyes will surely love.

Indeed, former Liverpool defender and Caleta-Car’s Croatia teammate Dejan Lovren has tipped the centre-back to shine in the Premier League, claiming: “He is physically very strong, stronger than other players. He will explode in a few years and become even stronger.”

The 20-cap star would be a fine addition to the West Ham defence for the second half of this season.

Meanwhile, West Ham have made their “first offer” for this Ligue 1 striker…

Legendary Premier League goalkeeper Petr Cech will retire from professional football at the end of the season.

Cech has enjoyed a wonderful career in England with both Chelsea and most recently Arsenal. The former Czech Republic captain has been a fantastic servant for both clubs, operating at the very highest level. The 36-year-old holds the record for clean sheets in the Premier League as well as lifting four league titles and one Champions League crown.

His departure will be a massive blow to the Arsenal dressing room and leaves Unai Emery with a gap that needs to be filled. Adding competition to Bernd Leno in between the sticks will be one of the Spaniard’s top priorities in the summer transfer window. Reports in the Daily Mail suggest that the Gunners could make a move for Burnley’s Nick Pope.

Instead, Arsenal should be aiming higher and make a move for Fiorentina starlet – Alban Lafont. Valued at £11.7m by Transfermarkt, the 20-year-old was earmarked as a star for the future after progressing through the Toulouse youth academy. After breaking into the first-team, he was snapped up by the Italian side this summer, who paid £7m to lure the talented ‘keeper to the Serie A.

Lafont has performed well since making the move abroad, keeping seven clean sheets in the league so far. The France U20 international possesses excellent reflexes and his size allows him to pull off miraculous save. His vast amount of experience at such a young age is extremely rare and should make adapting to life in the Premier League much easier.

Developing and improving with every game, Lafont could prove to be a massive star at the Emirates.

Arsenal fans, thoughts?

West Ham are reportedly interested in signing Marseille centre-back Duje Caleta-Car, with Newcastle United also eyeing up a move.

The Lowdown: West Ham juggernaut continues

The Hammers are absolutely flying at the moment and they picked up arguably their biggest result of the season so far on Sunday. David Moyes’ side won 3-2 at home to Liverpool, producing a strong all-round performance and jumping ahead of the Reds into third place in the Premier League.

It was further proof that the east Londoners are genuine top-four challengers at the moment, with everything seemingly going right for them.

The Latest: Caleta-Car linked with West Ham move

That doesn’t mean that the prospects of new signings is to be sniffed at, though, and according to Calciomercato, West Ham are keen on bringing Caleta-Car to the London Stadium.

The 25-year-old has made six starts for Marseille in Ligue 1 this season and was linked with a move to the Irons in the summer, as well as almost signing for Liverpool back in January.

Newly-rich Newcastle are also believed to be in the mix to sign the £16.2m-rated defender, who has won 19 caps for Croatia, who he represented in their run to the 2018 World Cup final.

The Verdict: Strong squad addition

While the Hammers have excelled in defence so far this season – Kurt Zouma and Angelo Ogbonna have been a strong centre-back pairing, starting 18 league games between them – more depth should be seen as a bonus.

Caleta-Car could come in and provide stiff competition for the first-choice pair, also allowing Moyes to rotate and keep his players fresh. He also comes with a ringing endorsement from international colleague and 2020 Premier League winner Dejan Lovren, who last year said that the 25-year-old is “physically very strong, stronger than other players” and “will explode in a few years and become even stronger”.

Aside from the strength of which Lovren speaks, Caleta-Car is also very composed in possession, with a 92.3% passing accuracy in Ligue 1 this season. That figure is higher than what anyone to have started a league game for West Ham has managed in 2021/22, so he could improve Moyes’ team in this regard.

The Marseille defender is also at a good age in terms of his peak years still hopefully being ahead of him, so he could be a shrewd investment for a number of years to come.

In other news, a journalist has provided an update on a potential Jesse Lingard return to West Ham. Read more here.

Rangers will be looking to continue their fine form in the Scottish Premiership as Giovanni van Bronkhorst’s side return to action at Ibrox tonight.

They play host to St Johnstone three days after beating Hearts 2-0 away from home to maintain their four-point lead over Celtic in the table.

Alfredo Morelos and Joe Aribo scored the winning goals for the Gers in the first half, with the Dutchman’s team able to hold on for a clean sheet.

How many changes will he make to the team? Here is our predicted XI…

We are predicting that he will make three alterations to the side, with Ianis Hagi, Steven Davis and Nathan Patterson coming in.

In his pre-match press conference, van Bronckhorst confirmed that he will be missing two players due to injury, revealing:

“Kemar (Roofe) has a setback and will hopefully return before the winter break. Ryan (Jack) we hope to have him back fully fit after the winter break. No fresh injuries from the match on Sunday.”

We are predicting that there will be a change in central midfield to keep the team fresh and avoid overplaying players during the festive period. Jack will be unable to slot in due to his knock and that could open the door for Steven Davis to come in for Glen Kamara.

The Finland international lost three of his five duels against Hearts and failed to make a single tackle or interception, suggesting that he could benefit from being axed in midweek before returning at the weekend as he was slightly off the pace. Davis is an experienced operator and can slot straight into the side for this match to play alongside Joe Aribo.

At right-back, Nathan Patterson could come in to offer James Tavernier in a move with a similar thought process to the Kamara switch. The ex-Newcastle man has started 15 of the 17 league matches this season and could drop to the bench to allow the youngster, who has four appearances in the Premiership this term, a chance to get some minutes under his belt.

Finally, Hagi could come in to replace Scott Arfield in the number 10 position. FFC published an article explaining why the £21k-per-week Romanian gem should be unleashed from the start after Arfield failed to catch the eye with his performance on Sunday.

The rest of the team could remain the same with, Allan McGregor, Calvin Bassey, Borna Barisic, Connor Goldson, Aribo, Fashion Sakala, Ryan Kent and Alfredo Morelos remaining.

AND in other news, Forget Arfield: Gio must unleash “dream” Rangers wiz who’s “a student of the game”…

Robin Koch could leave Leeds United in the summer transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to Danny Mills, with the former Leeds United right-back claiming in a recent interview with Football Insider that, after struggling to impress when deployed at both centre-back and central midfield, Jesse Marsch could look to sign an upgrade on the 25-year-old this summer – something that could subsequently see the Germany international depart Elland Road.

Regarding Koch’s position in the Leeds squad, Mills said: “He hasn’t really found a position. He’s OK here, he’s OK there and he’s decent there. You don’t look at it and go, ‘he is playing centre-half’ or ‘he’s playing defensive midfield.’

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“That is difficult for a player and also for a manager. Where does he fit in? Can the manager get somebody to do a specific job in that position who is maybe a little bit better?

“Sometimes being a utility player is great but it often means you are on the fringes. You are often second-choice in six or seven different positions.”

“The new manager will be looking to bring in two or three of his own players, players that he wants. If that means you have to get a couple out then so be it.”

Marsch can axe Koch with Luiz Felipe

While Koch is undoubtedly a player who boasts a significant amount of potential, it is undeniable that the 25-year-old has so far failed to live up to initial expectations following his £13m move to Elland Road in August 2020.

This has been particularly evident over his 14 Premier League appearances this term, in which the £15.3m-rated centre-back has made an average of 1.1 interceptions, 1.1 tackles and 2.1 clearances per game, in addition to being dribbled past 1.2 times and winning 4.1 duels – at a success rate of just 46% – per outing.

These returns have seen the £46k-per-week defender who Beren Cross dubbed both “horrible to watch” and “not good enough” earlier this season average a disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.56, ranking him as the Whites’ sixth-worst player in the league.

As such, it is perhaps no surprise that Victor Orta was reported to have made a €30m (£25m) bid for Lazio centre-back Luiz Felipe in the January transfer window, nor would it be surprising for the sporting director to make a second approach for the 25-year-old at the end of the season – as he is set to leave the Stadio Olimpico upon the expiry of his contract this summer.

And, considering how impressive the defender has been in Italy in the current campaign, Luiz Felipe would very much appear to be something of a perfect candidate to replace Koch in Marsch’s side.

Indeed, over his 27 Serie A appearances this season, the £16.2m-rated Brazilian has helped his side keep five clean sheets, in addition to making an average of 1.2 interceptions, 1.4 tackles and 3.4 clearances per fixture, as well as being dribbled past just 0.5 times and winning 3.8 duels – at a success rate of 54% – per game.

These returns have seen the £24k-per-week defender who Jerry Mancini claimed possesses “significant pace” and labelled “quality” average a highly impressive SofaScore match rating 7.01, ranking him as Maurizio Sarri’s seventh-best player in the Italian top flight.

As such, if a deal for Luiz Felipe is there to be done this summer, it would indeed appear a wise move for Orta to launch an offensive for the Lazio centre-back – something which would subsequently allow the sporting director to move Koch onto pastures new.

AND in other news: Sold at £13m, now worth £100m: Leeds had a mare on 20 y/o “everyone is talking about”

West Brom defender Semi Ajayi has revived his career at the club in the second half of the season, having started the last nine games in a row despite making just 15 appearances in the 2021/22 Championship beforehand.

His speed and physicality have caught the eye in recent months, and after becoming an outcast under former Albion manager Slaven Bilic, current boss Steve Bruce has brought him in from the cold and helped him return to his best – but his recent form might eventually come at a cost.

What’s the news?

Former Premier League striker Kevin Phillips has claimed that the Baggies could be forced into selling their 28-year-old centre-back, who he believes could even be playing in the top flight next season.

When asked by West Brom News if Albion could lose Ajayi this summer, the 48-year-old replied: “I would say so. I think he’s a really accomplished centre-half, he has shown in these spells that he can deliver and it’s just getting that consistency.

“When a new manager comes in and you fall out or whatever, I think he’s shown that he’s got the quality, he’s a big, powerful centre-half with leadership qualities.

“So, I would assume that there would be interest in him, he would fit the mould of a lot of teams, maybe in the lower half of the Premier League, and definitely the top half of the Championship – he’s definitely a player that would attract interest.”

West Brom need to keep Ajayi

Ajayi has excelled in the Championship in previous years, including his 2018/19 campaign which saw him feature in all 46 of Rotherham’s matches, scoring seven goals in the process. That prompted the Baggies to sign him for £1.49m, and their promotion-winning 2019/20 campaign saw him score five goals in 43 matches, a very respectable return for a centre-back.

This year, the Nigeria international has made 2.9 clearances and won 5.1 duels and 1.3 tackles per game, while completing 80% of his dribbles and executing 1.6 long passes per match.

With superb athleticism and rapidly improving defensive skills, Ajayi – who last year was described by former England midfielder Trevor Sinclair to be “getting better all the time” – would be a huge loss to West Brom, and the Albion faithful will surely be hoping that they can keep hold of him for next season.

Given the fine form that the Nigerian has shown, it could be disastrous for the Baggies to lose the 28-year-old if the lure of another club proves too attractive to resist.

In other news: West Brom dodged a huge transfer bullet over £48k-p/w “Rolls-Royce”